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Ancestral Lands Being Reviewed in Philippines

ICTMN Staff

4/18/12

Last week, the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) and a government firm owned by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority decided to honor ancestral tribal titles, pending authenticity, that were issued within the Camp John Hay area in Baguio, Philippines, according to a report by the Inquirer News.

Zenaida Hamada-Pawid, NCIP chairperson, along with the board of directors of John Hay Management Corp. created a task force on April 10 to validate the Certificates of Ancestral Land Titles (CALTs) inside the former American rest and recreation center, said Leandro Yangot, JHMC director in the Inquirer News.

The Office of the Solicitor General, acting on the government’s behalf, contends many of the CALTs were processed rapidly according to government records.

“But JHMC also promised to respect ancestral claims. So three members of JHMC and three members of the NCIP will review around 20 CALTs inside Camp John Hay. The titles that turn out to be genuine will not be challenged in court. The task force hopes to accomplish its job within the month,” Yangot said in the Inquirer.

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